Dare
by Sahara Storm
Summary: [Oneshot, NejiHina] On a dare, Hinata sets out to kiss the one she truly loves.


**Title: **Dare

**Fandom:** Naruto

**Pairing:** Neji/Hinata

**Rating: **PG

**Word Count: **891

**Summary/Description: **On a dare, Hinata sets out to kiss the one she truly loves.

**Warnings/Spoilers: **None. Let's put this any time after the Main Matches of the Chuunin Selection, after Naruto-kun beats a little sense into Neji-kun.

**A/N:** You know, I think I'm beginning to like this pairing. :clings fearfully to NejiTen: Oh, also, as a side note, kunoichi have crap to do. Missions, and training and practice and stuff. Taking the time to have a slumber party is therefore, highly improbable. Cue me, not caring.

**Dedication: **For Sintari-san. :-)

**Disclaimer: **If I owned Naruto, I'd steal Neji, lock him in a cage, and stick him under my bed, where I would play with him as much as I pleased.

* * *

Neji's cloudy silver eyes eased open at the sound of soft, timid knocking. He stared at the door for a while, then turned to the clock. Its red light blinked 10:43 at him. His eyes slid back to the door, and the presence behind it that had been lurking for the last ten minutes. Who could it be at this hour? 

Unfolding himself from his meditation pose, the Hyuuga rose lithely. He did not bother with putting his shirt back on, and instead began walking straight to the entrance of his room. He passed his weapons pouch where it lay on the dresser; if it was an intruder – a stupid one at that, to have knocked – he would not need it, anyway.

The very last thing that Neji expected to greet his eyes upon swinging the door open was his cousin, twin eyes to his own cast to the ground, fingers tapping together in her anxiety.

"Hinata-sama," he said, ducking his head briefly in respect, not allowing his shock to filter into his features.

"Hello, N-Neji-nii-san," the girl uttered softly, eyes flitting to meet his for a short second. "Uhm… may I… may I come in?"

"O-of course," the normally stoic boy said falteringly, wondering what was going on. He let the door open wider for her to slip past him, the collar of her jacket brushing against his bare skin with the slightest rush of air. After checking to make sure that no one else was about, he closed the door.

"Is there something I can help you with, Hinata-sama?"

The indigo-haired girl, in lieu of answering, made a strangled sort of noise and bowed her head deeply, dark red suffusing her pale cheeks in a sudden rush. The reason why dawned on Neji as he glanced down, his bare chest registering. He made short work of grabbing and donning his shirt, and then repeated his question politely.

"Uhm… yes, please." A small swallow, and the tapping started up again. "C-could you stand right there, please, Neji-nii-sama?" The girl pointed to the open window, where the dappled moonlight danced upon the sill, with a shaking finger.

Neji regarded the girl strangely. She was acting very queerly…

"Why?" he queried respectfully, if bluntly.

She swallowed again, harder this time, as if trying to dislodge an uncomfortable lump in her throat.

"P-please?" she asked plaintively, voice softening even more. "I would l-like to s-see some… something."

Sliding her a dubious look, the brunet did as he was asked, and walked over to stand with his back to the window. He gave his cousin an expectant look.

"Uhm… uhm… uhm…" With each uncertain word, the dark-haired girl's inflection became a little louder, more high pitched. Her hands were wringing themselves into a twist behind her back where she thought her older cousin could not see. Neji waited patiently, curious as to what she wanted to see. He watched as she seemed to calm herself down a bit, and pluck a bit of resolve out of the cool night air.

Later, he would admit to himself that she had moved very quickly indeed; he did not have time to put out a hand to stop her, even quite register what she was going to do. One moment she was standing five feet away, and the other, she was pressing cold lips to his own in a brief, chaste kiss, hands braced against the warmth of his chest. In the next second, she was darting through the door.

Neji stared after her, the closest thing to utter dumbfoundment that he had ever experienced showing on his face. His own fingers travelled to his lips; they felt warm now.

"You know, Ino, it was pretty mean of you to give Hinata that dare, you know," Sakura commented, hugging a pillow to her chest.

The blonde, sprawled out on a nest of cushions, snorted in mock disbelief.

"What, you say? That little old dare? She shouldn't find that too hard."

Tenten rolled her eyes as she popped some popcorn into her mouth.

"'Kiss the one you love most in the world, on the lips, in front of a window in the moonlight'. Yup, sounds easy enough to me. _Especially_ for Hinata." The weapons mistress' voice oozed sarcasm.

The pink-haired kunoichi shook her head.

"The poor thing's probably still standing outside Naruto's apartment, wondering what in the hell she's gonna do."

Ino frowned.

"Aw, come on, it wasn't _that_…"

All conversation halted abruptly as the door to the room creaked open, and the Hyuuga heir slipped in. Her face was flushed, and her breathing said that she had just run quite a distance. Ino hopped onto her knees, eyes shining with excitement.

"Well? Did you do it? Did you?"

Panting softly, Hinata nodded. The blue-eyed girl threw the other two girls a triumphant look.

"See? Told ya it wasn't that hard. Hinata's got more pluck than you think." Sakura and Tenten conceded easily, smiling, and the white-eyed girl reddened even more under their admiring looks.

"So," Sakura said ponderingly as Hinata sat on the bed next to Ino, "now that the love of your life has finally gotten it through his thick skull that you like him, I wonder what he's going to do?"

Hinata's eyes were fixed on her lap. She bit her lip, and wondered also.

* * *

**A/N: **Not altogether comfortable with it, but feh. Suggestions and concrit very welcome. 


End file.
